Leviathan

E145011

Leviathan is Thomas Hobbes’s seminal 1651 philosophical treatise that lays out a foundational theory of the social contract and the necessity of a powerful sovereign to maintain order.

All labels observed (2)

Label Occurrences
Leviathan canonical 15
Leviathan (book) 1

How this entity was disambiguated

Statements (49)

Predicate Object
instanceOf book ⓘ
philosophical treatise ⓘ
political philosophy work ⓘ
arguesThat a powerful sovereign is necessary to maintain peace and order ⓘ
in the state of nature life is "solitary, poor, nasty, brutish, and short" ⓘ
individuals consent to give up some rights to a sovereign for security ⓘ
author Thomas Hobbes ⓘ
centralConcept absolute sovereign ⓘ
commonwealth ⓘ
social contract ⓘ
countryOfOrigin England ⓘ
field legal philosophy ⓘ
moral philosophy ⓘ
political theory ⓘ
firstEditionPlaceOfPublication London ⓘ
linked to: London, England
fullTitle Leviathan, or The Matter, Forme and Power of a Common-Wealth Ecclesiasticall and Civil ⓘ
genre political philosophy ⓘ
social contract theory ⓘ
hasMetaphor the state as an artificial man ⓘ
hasPart Of Commonwealth ⓘ
Of Man ⓘ
Of a Christian Commonwealth ⓘ
Of the Kingdom of Darkness ⓘ
historicalContext written during the English Civil War ⓘ
influenced Jean-Jacques Rousseau ⓘ
John Locke ⓘ
liberal political theory ⓘ
modern political philosophy ⓘ
modern theories of the state ⓘ
social contract theorists ⓘ
influencedBy English Civil War ⓘ
materialism ⓘ
mechanistic philosophy ⓘ
mainTheme civil war and disorder ⓘ
human nature ⓘ
political authority ⓘ
social contract ⓘ
sovereignty ⓘ
state of nature ⓘ
notableQuote "Covenants, without the sword, are but words." ⓘ
"The life of man, solitary, poor, nasty, brutish, and short." ⓘ
originalLanguage English ⓘ
philosophicalPosition advocates political absolutism ⓘ
defends legal positivism ⓘ
supports strong centralized authority ⓘ
publicationYear 1651 ⓘ
shortTitle Leviathan ⓘ
structure four parts ⓘ
titleAlludesTo biblical sea monster Leviathan ⓘ

How these facts were elicited

Referenced by (16)

Full triples — surface form annotated when it differs from this entity's canonical label.